This Time It’s No Hoax: Whole Foods coming to Silver Lake

Whole Foods has agreed to move into the Glendale Boulevard shopping center now occupied by Ralphs.

“At this time, we can confirm there is a commitment to occupy the 2520 Glendale Blvd location,” said company spokesperson Andi Dowda in an email. “However, timing and other exciting details about the store are not currently available.”

The high-end grocery store chain issued the statement after real estate agent Rob Kallick said on his Twitter feed that a deal had been finalized to bring Whole Foods to Silver Lake.

Rumors about Whole Foods and other changes at the Glendale Boulevard shopping center have been circulating for several months after many long-time tenants have closed up shop as the landlord had refused to renew leases.

Reports and rumors of Whole Foods moving into the Silver Lake area have popped up before. In fact, many residents were fooled into thinking the chain was moving into the area in 2011 when someone hung a banner on the fence of a former Circuit City store that said a Whole Foods was “Coming Soon.” That sign proved to be a fake.

Glendale has always been the designated squaresville. Chronically conventional, intentionally unhip, but wealthy and influential enough to not put up with any drastic or “hip” changes that threaten their traditionally conventional suburban profile. the “hip” gentrification going on in N.E.L.A. has become so predictably commercial that it threatens the authentically hip and unique diversity that always existed around here and had nothing to do with having to pay more for everything including coffee and water. Wtf is so “hip” about that and how does it not exclude or displace entire communities north and east of Riverside Drive?

Not to mention: As if the RENTS WEREN’T ALREADY TOO DAMN HIGH, now this. Honestly the location couldn’t be worse in terms of the parking lot that will now become Glendale Blvd and Rowena (worse than it already is? Oh, yes.) And still more unsavory poseurs moving into the formerly cool Silver Lake in droves.

Oh Echo Park, oh Silver Lake – how I do not like who and what you have become. There I said it.

Hbhb is just comparing the already existing Whole Foods in Glendale to the proposed one here. His point is that having a Whole Foods in the neighborhood probably didn’t have an effect on rents or gentrification in Glendale; so perhaps it won’t affect those things here.

Ive been in silver lake for 20 years. Having a cracked out Ralph’s with shelves full of expired products and not many other shopping options has not been “cool”. If having a grocery store that doesnt suck is “cool”, then sign me up to be a “poseur” !

No. That’s one of the main reasons I shop at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Costco. Prices for stuff is already high enough without having to absorb inflated union salary and benefit packages. Unions are redundant and no longer needed in our work force.

I would argue that the threat of unionization has driven non-unionized companies to treat their workers better. Trader Joes employees seem to earn a decent wage and benefits, and when they started, they were competing with unionized supermarkets. FedEx employees also seem to have a decent wage, and they compete with UPS, which is unionized.

I don’t think unions have outlived their usefulness; it’s just that we have outsourced many of the toughest, most low-paying jobs to third-world countries where we don’t have to witness their horrid working conditions or think about their paltry wages.

Actually, the facts on the ground don’t really support your statement. Private sector unions increasingly deliver weaker benefit packages and lower salaries than many benchmark non-union competitors – one of the reasons they are losing advantage.

So, you are in fact “absorbing” the cost of higher salaries and benefits packages from the mostly non-union shops like Trader Joes, Whole Foods and Costco – but not dues to unions, but because it’s the right thing to do for human beings, communities, and quality of life.

That said, Whole Foods, while not being unionized, offers higher average salaries, better healthcare, and more expansive benefits than Ralphs.

That’s one of the overlooked upsides to some kinds of gentrification – the promise of more progressive employers and better jobs. For low-skilled and semi-skilled individuals, Whole Foods offers a better gig than Ralphs, Albertsons and other Kroger-like chains.

And if you shop selectively, avoid costly meats and luxury items, it’s a healthier alternative for the kiddos and can be competitive with Ralphs for many products.

Bummer. As much as I like Whole Foods, I can’t afford to shop there all the time. The only other low-cost place would be Vons, and they either don’t have something I need (basic stuff like spinach!) or the lines are atrocious. Guess I’ll be driving to Glendale for groceries??

Funny, I can walk to this Ralphs but rarely go there because they are always out of so many things I want to buy (like Orange Juice or anything in that tiny refrigerator section) and I HATE the self serve checkouts and the fact that since they have those they reduced regular staff…so I go for my big shopping once a month by car (sadly, so much prefer to walk) to Vons which seems to always have things in stock. I’m guessing you are referring to the small Vons on Alvarado…the one on Sunset/Virgil is great but it might be too far out of your way and/or it may be because I unusually go on a weekend morning that I think it’s so much better.

At any rate….regarding Whole Foods coming…HOORAY!!!!!!!! – and hopefully like Serene B suggests it will take some of the crush away from TJ’s.

It definitely is small, but Whole Foods is just SO expensive! The Vons in Echo Park was what I was referring to, the one in Silver Lake would be nice to go to but it takes 35 minutes to get back to Echo Park on weekdays because of the traffic on Sunset. An employee at the Ralphs told me a couple of months ago that the store was expanding – adding a big salad bar, better bakery area, butcher, etc. I still think there are low-income people and/or those who have difficulty getting around who are going to hurt the most here. People still need access to affordable food resources! Of course I’m a big fan of the farmers’ markets but we still need grocery stores. Sorry for the long rant….

The meat is good at Super King because it doesn’t stay on the shelves long. Super A is good too. But if you want organic or things like venison we go to Harmony Farms in La Crescenta. That’s where good restaurants shop.

May be time to venture a bit further north and east to the Smart n’ Final in Lincoln Heights at 5-points. I find just about all of the conventional supermarket items there for a bit less and the milk never goes bad beFore the posted expiration date, which is the reason I started to shop there in the first place. You can also go to the Super A in Highland Park for a real dose of an old-school N.E.L.A. experience and explore entire new varieties of “luxury” items in their in-store deli. Neither of these stores cater to any specialized diets or luxury tastes but if its bread, milk, eggs, produce, and meat you’re looking, they’ve got it and for a reasonable price.

Dear Eastsider, Has there been a definite announcement? Where? A month ago, according to people at Ralphs, they were still negotiating that Ralphs would have a remodel and reopen. Interesting that Whole Foods is coming in. Word is that the owners of the property want to tear down most of the shops and put in Condos. (That explains the general decline of that overall property). That Ralphs, or whoever moved in would have to accommodate the condos. Guess Ralphs lost the deal. The choices for markets will be between 2 high end and Trader Joes. But where does one go for day to day marketing/cleaning products at reasonable prices? (Wonder if CVS will stay. ) Kinda sad to see the loss of the local community shopping center. The end of an era indeed.

Um. No. Do you see the excitement and response this gets? Traffic will increase. Whole Foods caters to the increasingly wealthy 30-somethings who live in Silver Lake. I trust you haven’t seen what the Trader Joe’s parking lot looks like, or else you wouldn’t be suggesting that traffic will be minimal.

The parking lot is way too small to accommodate this store. The Glendale Whole Foods has an OK-sized parking lot and it is almost always full, especially on weekends.

I’ve lived in this neighborhood long enough to see the changes that have taken place in this shopping center. Back in the day it was Market Basket and Savons, then Hughes Market (my favorite) now Ralph’s and CVS. The parking had always been bad there. Can’t stop evolution.

Does anyone remember when there was a market where the Citibank is now, on Glendale Blvd. at Silver Lake Blvd.? It was torn down in the mid-1970’s. I also remember Beech’s (I think that was the name) on Glendale Blvd. in Atwater Village that stood across the street from the Starbucks – which was also a market, not too long ago.

And Hub Mart, or something like that, where TJs is now? My rare jaunts to Whole Foods have been fun but frustrating. Expensive! I guess we can always eat two-thirds as much, and healthier, than before. Whatever is near CVS and its pharmacy will be convenient no matter what.

I actually like the Ralphs. It sells the pet supplies my animals prefer, the paper goods I like, the absolute best corn chowder mix, the snack size bags of chips my grandkids love, and I can afford to shop there. I love Trader Joe’s and our local farmer’s market, but I’ll miss Ralphs. I’ve gone to the Glendale Whole Foods for specialty items, but it and Gelson’s are way too expensive for everyday use.

Whole Paychecks moving into the ratty ass shopping center. Is Whole Foods with their 20 dollar a pound organic cous cous is going to keep the homeless from living in the car encampments behind the store or the recent plague of graffiti or my personal favorite of the homeless sleeping on the walkway in front of CVS and Ralphs?

Mixed feelings about this. Nice to see investment in the neighborhood, but WF is really expensive. It basically means that there is no middle-cost supermarket in all of Silver Lake—you will have to go to Los Feliz or Echo Pk or Glendale. I am beginning to think about waiting a few years and cashing out on my condo—let some hipster pay off what’s left of my mortgage and give me some cash to move to a small town.

I drive to WF in Glendale once or twice a month and it’s a bit of a pain, stopping at every block to get there (lights, crosswalks, etc.). WF salad bar rocks, plain and simple. I’m 1 block from Gelsons and hit that salad bar often, but it’s NO comparison to WF. Also, at least for the Glendale WF, it’s $2 off (per pound) for all salad and hot food bars on Wed., which blows Gelsons all the way to Tj’s parking lot.

The bottom line is that WF will bring more choice to our hood…assuming the same selection as the Glendale store. WF offer what many other stores in our hood don’t, regardless of price. You can chose to shop there or not, but be clear, at least you’ll HAVE that choice.

And yes, to one of the previous posters, Hub Market was the spot that TJ’s now resides in (and Gelsons was called Mayfair). Hub had a pretty good deli for sandwiches FWIR, though I was in high school then so my tastes might not have been that sophisticated 😉

In a documentary clip of Walt Disney arriving at his Hyperion studio in the 30’s, the camera is shooting Walt and catches a glimpse of “the Hub” across the street…. It can be seen here at 1:36 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwLznNpJz2I

Finally!! I remember the rumor that Pioneer market was turning into a Whole foods. was really bummed when it turned into another of many drug stores in the neighborhood. finally quality meet will be here. done w the dirty Ralphs and the newly remodeled but still Ghetto Vons

I don’t understand the complaints about the parking lot being crowded. I live just up the hill, and I’m at Ralphs 4 days/week for milk/eggs/bread-type runs. I’ve never had trouble finding a spot, weekday or weekend. The only parking scarcity is way down the other end in front of Sbux in the mornings.

I’m annoyed about the transaction-cost (i.e. downtime without a supermarket during the construction/renovation), but fired up to see our corner of LA getting a solid upgrade. Things being nice>things being run down. It just takes a little more work is all.

That said, I’d be sad if this put in motion a chain of events leading to the loss of places like Red Lion and Rick’s, but I don’t foresee that happening.

I highly doubt this will force Red Lion out. The restaurant is almost always packed, and even sees decent business on weekdays. They don’t appear to be in financial straights or dwindling in popularity. (In fact, I’d argue that Red Lion has become more popular. The amount of Party Bus-types from Hollywood or Glendale that I see on the patio during the weekends has increased dramatically.)

I mean, it’s fine for Ralph’s, because people don’t go out of their way to go to Ralph’s. They could just as easily go to their nearest Von’s, another Ralph’s, or some other grocery store. But people will come from a further radius to go to WF. And the parking lot is not adequate.

1) Unions aren’t redundant. Far from it. Unionization in this country has been dramatically reduced at the same time as economic inequality has dramatically increased. Go figure. Texas or Arkansas await for the foes of unionization.

2) Whole Foods is gentrification personified. No doubt about it. If I need some staple item I can walk to Ralphs, scan it out and be done. Now I will be able to go in and get this item (or some up-scale variant of it) for a premium while hanging out in line with all the cool trendy shoppers who think they invented Silver Lake.

3) Where are the local residents whose pocketbooks aren’t so well endowed going to shop? Not at Whole Foods; this move will drive people away from their community when shopping for basic necessities.

4) TJs still wins the price war with WF, but I do see additional traffic from the west coming in to WF on the two lane Rowena bottleneck or its alternates.

5) The old market at Silver Lake and Glendale was the big T, Thrifty Mart. Across the street was the Mixville Garage. SavOn and Market Basket came in to what was an old trailer park around 1966. Market Basket then became Hughes. Hughes was a straight ahead serviceable grocery store that served the community well. Rockaway Records was next to Hughes. Hughes then became Ralphs. For some reason Ralphs did not try to maintain what Hughes brought to the community and quality did slide. There are plenty of examples of Ralphs where quality has been maintained, so I really can’t understand why Ralphs management neglected this particular Ralphs store. Now they have elected to punt.

6) As Silver Lake becomes increasingly unaffordable, the mellow anonymity that was for so long the vibe here is going down the drain and being replaced by the vain pretensions and aggro sense of entitlement more characteristic of points west.

Let me get this straight. Having NO interest in watching or experiencing Glendale Blvd turn into even more of a parking lot makes me a – how you say, hillbillie?

Well hot dog Ellia Mae load up that jalopy and let’s head 3.4 miles out to Glendale to git some o’ that FANCY FOOD! We’s got comp’ny we got’s to impress! Goes by the name o’ eastsideARTS and we can’t risk disappointin’ em!

Here-here DRYMTN! Excellent post, particularly #6. if only these juvenile “hipsters” realized just how pretentiously square and lame they actually are, they would understand rather than remain oblivious to the eye-rolls they elicit from the truly hip, mellow, and anonymous of N.E.L.A. to this day, i’ve yet to see a single original value, thought, or invention introduced by these conspicuous dufuses. Unless overpaying for everything from pizza to homes is original(?).

If there were still “bangers” in Silverlake(?), there wouldn’t be any hipsters. Only when this area became safer did hipsters decide it was safe to move in. So now that that’s been settled, when can we expect the relocation of hipsters from our communities? And “thanks” in advance for your cooperation.

Most of the time we drive to the Vons at the corner of Central and Los Feliiz. It’s cheaper than Ralphs and the meat is better. This Ralphs we think of as more akin to 7-11, a convenience store. We use it for milk runs and last minute salad making ingredients. Their produce is normally quite good, at least for what we buy. The existing space is rather small for a Whole Foods operation. It’ll be interesting to see how Whole Foods uses it. Even more interesting will be who or what moves into the other empty spaces. It’ll be good for that strip to look less like a ghost town. I’m taking a wait and see attitude about it. Parking is no problem for us as we nearly always walk there – we’re just a couple blocks away. All that said, I do miss Hughes Market. Now THAT was a neighborhood grocery store.

I think they are going to knock down the walls and use the space all the way up to CVS. the pizza place 20/20 video and (i think) basking robin are all shuttered. the article alludes to this when it says the owner has not been getting new leases.

The strip mall really needs to be torn down. A mixed use commercial/residential development that gets rid of that large mid-century suburban-style parking lot would be very helpful. Calming the Glendale Boulevard Freeway is also of major importance. Perhaps taking out a lane and putting in a bike lane would calm the aggressiveness and speeding.

I love the strip mall but only because of the angle the curb ramps come up from the street and drop down into the parking lot. I saw a limousine stuck on the top of that ramp once and it was glorious. It was a luxury class see-saw.

I live on the block right behind Ralphs and like another poster on here, go in there probably 4-6 times a week to get basics – I go to TJs/farmer market a few times a month for the rest. It’s obviously very convenient for those of us who live within walking distance. I have mixed feelings about WF coming in. WF is a great store and I imagine will usher in some other nicer stores with it. WF will not move into that mall the way it is now so the structure will be upgraded which is good. But there is no doubt that it is more expensive than Ralphs and that will have an impact on the working families in my neighborhood.

It’s funny, yes whole foods does have expensive items but no one realizes that they actually carry a lot of items that are in fact cheaper than a large scale store such as Ralphs and with better quality. Someone mentioned spinach…have you purchased bagged spinach at ralphs, mass produced, and over priced…same bag at Whole Foods…organic and $1.99. Most produce is comparable if not cheaper than at a Vons…their 365 brand is cheaper than Trader Joes in many cases. Go buy a pound of organic apples at WH…same cost as the non-organic ones at Ralphs.

A large scale indie chain like whole foods benefits everyone not just the uber rich….people from all walks of life deserve GMO free veggies- i realize thats idealistic to say, but frankly this is a good start.

Why here? This is the most horrifyingly bad shopping center and most inconvenient parking lot I have ever used. Hard to get into, hard to get out of, frequent gridlock, tiny slots, narrow lanes, and hills. So bad it might as well be a Trader Joes. As a WFM stockholder, I protest.

While I will likely rarely shop at Whole Foods because they are so expensive I totally welcome this to that scanky shopping center. Hopefully the entire place will get a nice facelift (including the exterior of the CVS) and having a high-end market like this in SL, a short distance from TJs and Gelsons, as well as all the other ethnic grocery stores in EP/Thai Town gives a nice choice all within a reasonable driving range. And since i just recently bought a townhome in EP, it certainly can’t hurt the resale value(assuming I ever do) way down the line to have WF just 2 miles away.. Now of only the horrid Walgreens and empty storefront on Echo Park Ave & Sunset Blvd can be bought by Trader Joes, torn down and built back up to the sidewalk like the Pioneer market then life would be complete ;>p

That Walgreen’s with the large parking lot outfront is offensive. The original charm of “downtown” Echo Park with shops pulled up to the sidewalk as seen uninterrupted on the opposite side of the street, has been destroyed on that side. When people bandy about screaming “Save Sunset Junction” or “Save Echo Park” there chief gripe should be with all of the mid-century abominations like strip malls and suburban style front facing parking lots that nearly destroyed these wonderful streetcar neighborhoods. What we love most about these areas whether it be Silver Lake, Los Fe-leez or Echo Park is the original charm that they largely still retain of being built around the transit NOT the automobile.

Regarding all the rants about the parking lot: 1) Previous mentions of the redevelopment of this property (some months ago) had 2 level parking involved, i.e., underground parking. Or perhaps even parking on top of the store (with high enough risers to hide the cars from view of residents). 2) There are many ways of increasing parking even w/o adding an additional level. For one, the whole store property can be set back maybe 20ft, using up the somewhat inefficient access driveway currently behind the property. That would add another row of parking. The parking space/spaces on the side of Ralphs (next to the east/west bank) is also inefficiently laid out—lots of dead space there. 3) On the rare occasions that the lot was full, I’ve easily parked on the street (glendale) in front, or the street in the rear, no biggie. Though I think the street parking spaces can also be made to accommodate more spaces. 4) Finally, WF and their planners aren’t stupid enough to build a too-large store into a too-small parking lot, not to mention I’m sure there’s LA city codes to deal with that also. I’ve only been to a couple of WF stores, and their parking lots were far from inadequate.

I don’t know if you guys got the memo but Silverlake has been gentrified for years so this shouldn’t come as some huge surprise. I have to say 3 things in support of WF coming in. 1. i used to think they are way more expensive than other stores but really what’s more expensive is all the specialty items. The 365 brand is super affordable and of way higher quality than most generic supermarket brands and a bunch of it is organic. 2. if you took your head out of the sand for a sec you’d realize that MOST of the food we get in supermarkets is pumped full of chemicals, pesticides and hormones and genetically modified. I would have preferred a closer Trader Joe’s being that I’ve lived in echo park for the last 15 years, BUT WF is a nice second so that I can buy food that my parents would have considered proper food when they were my age. 3. WF takes food stamps. That plus 365 brand is a win-win because the quality is much higher than stuff at ralphs. If WF only catered to the 1% then it wouldn’t be the successful and the huge company that it is. It is a grocery store!! with some stuff that is way overpriced and some stuff that is reasonable and most importantly healthy and not fucked with!!!!! It has raised the bar in what grocery stores should be like in a lot of ways. 50 years ago there was no question about the quality of food we were eating but with big corporations taking over we really have no idea what we are eating anymore!! Do you really want to be eating the poor cows you see huddled together off the 5 freeway!?? Open your mind and stop being such a hater-not everything that’s new is terrible! Maybe the meat is more expensive because it costs a little more to raise cattle the right way. You can’t compare a family farm to a corporate farm. Going to ralphs is supporting a way worse establishment than WF is and just because ralph’s has been there has nothing to do with the fact that it supports terrible farming practices. Open your mind people and stop thinking so small!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am a resident of FrogTown and use the Ralphs regularly. There is an ever increasing organic veggie section there along with organic beef & chicken, wild salmon, etc. I can get organic dairy products milk, butter, cheese, yoghurt. I used to be pretty impressed with Wholefoods as an organisation until i found out that some of their executives were in cahoots with Monsanto and put money behind sinking Proposition 37 and propping up pro-Agribusiness pro-GMO candidates running for office… Now under pressure from the alternative media

It might be time to remove a lane of cars and bring back the Glendale Blvd streetcar, to ease up on the traffic congestion that’s already huge, and is just going to get worse as the corridor gets more destinations on it.

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